A little tough love advice on prepping for your business portraits.

Your business portrait is coming up! I know you're excited, because you're shooting with me!

I've got a little advice for advance prepping for your portrait.  It might be a little tough to take, but I've got your best interests at heart, so take a listen.

My tough love advice:

Fix the hair coming out of the wrong places.  This one's a little touchy to talk about, do this at home--take a good look in the mirror.  Noses, ears, chins.  Trust me, it happens to the best of us and there's a simple fix for all of it.  Just snip and pluck.

Wrinkly clothing.  It's so great that you bought a new dress shirt for your shoot, but make sure to take it out of it's folded state and get it pressed.  You've got your favorite blouse, make sure that it's been cleaned and pressed before your shoot.   Wrinkles definitely counteract the look of "I'm good at what I do", unless of course, you're the creative type where wrinkles say, "I'm good at what I do".

Ties.  Men, pick a power tie.  Stay away from flesh colored ties.  Just trust me on this one.

Get your hair done in advance and have your hair styled the day of your portrait.  If you don't like your roots or grey showing, get your roots or grey done.  Go one better, invest in having your hair styled the day of your shoot.  Then make it worthwhile and plan to go out--to lunch, to dinner, with your partner, with your friends!

Invest in makeup.  I've shot business portraits with a makeup artist present and I've shot them without.  A makeup artist uses photo ready products to reduce shine and enhance your features. They can even contour your face, to make the most of your features.  They use the right products to enhance your look in front of the camera.  But perhaps more importantly, I've seen what a makeup artist can do for my subject's demeanor.  They feel powerful, more beautiful or handsome.  They walk into the shoot differently.  Colleagues oooh and ahhhhh over them.  At the very least, make an appointment in advance at your favorite makeup counter and learn how to apply products and the best makeup for your shoot.  You'll feel so much more confident walking into our shoot.

Have you got other questions about how you can get ready for your business portrait?  I've written this, this, this and this on getting ready.  Still have more questions?  Give me a shout!  I'm happy to help!

See you soon!

My 6 favorite tips for perfect makeup for your photo shoot

I KNOW you've been prepping ahead of time for your shoot and have followed my advice on advance preparation. You've gotten your hair cut, you've been drinking lots of water and getting enough sleep.  It's the day of your shoot and time to do your makeup.  Now what?  If you don't have a professional makeup artist at the ready, don't worry, I've got you covered!  Here are my 6 favorite tips for perfect makeup for your shoot.

Think these tips are just for women?  Guys, you'll benefit from (well, most) of these tips too!

1. Hydrate your skin:  (This works for both men and women!) Begin by hydrating your skin with a lightweight, non greasy moisturizer.  (preferably without SPF which sometimes has ingredients that can make your face look shinier) A good moisturizer will plump up your skin and it will look softer, firmer and smoother.  And hydrating with a good moisturizer will prevent makeup from looking too "cake-y".

2.  Think MATTE:  Use matte makeup so that your skin won't look greasy or shiny or reflect the light.  Matte makeup also covers inconsistency in skin textures (i.e. wrinkles!) making your skin look smoother.  It can cover any redness in the skin or blemishes.  It goes without saying that your foundation should match your skin tone exactly.

3.  Limit shimmery blushes or eyeshadows:  In camera, a shiny area is like a spotlight and will attract attention.  (However, a little shiny lipgloss is good because it can make your lips look more full!)

4.  Highlight and brighten the focal point of the portrait: your eyes:  Got dark circles?  Use a yellow based under eye concealer to hide them.  Use eyeliner to define the eye on your upper lid and use a shadow that will highlight your eye, blending it to the outer corners with a brush. For blue eyes, choose warm tones to balance them.  For brown eyes, most any color will work, but purple, bronze and navy work well.  For green eyes, reddish browns are good options.  And for hazel eyes cool tones work well.  Don't forget mascara and use an eyebrow pencil to fill in thin brows.

5.  Apply your makeup a little heavier than you think you'll need it:  Even if you are going for a more subtle look, the camera sees differently than our eye does. Makeup will look less dramatic than to our eye.  Be sure to bring your makeup with you in case you need to add a little more.

6. Apply your makeup in natural light if possible.  If it looks good there, it will most likely look good in any lighting condition.

Good makeup application only enhances my post production work and makes for an even more natural look so that you will look your best in your portrait!

I can't wait to see you!